THATTA, Feb 18: Traffic on the National Highway remained suspended for over two hours as activists of the People's Party Parliamentarians and labour organizations with residents staged a sit-in on it here on Friday to protest against an attack on seven labourers of the Indus Jute Mill.

PPP MPA Humera Alwani, who led the protest, said the labourers of the mill in Dhabeji had been protesting for a considerable time for restoration of their rights, including provision of social security and eight-hour duty, etc

However, she said, the factory owner had deployed strongmen brought from Punjab at the mill to tackle the situation. On Friday, she added, the strongmen had attacked the protesting labourers with iron bars and other blunt weapons and injured Naik Mohammad Chandio, Shah Murad, Saif Lakhair, Amin Rajput and three others.

She said three of the injured labourers had been taken to Karachi because of their serious condition and the remaining four admitted to the rural health centre in Gharo.

Sources said that because of the blockade, hundreds of upcountry and Karachi-bound vehicles remained stranded on the highway between Gharo and Ghaghar Phatak.

Mirpur Sakro TPO Gul Abbas and Gharo SHO Anwar Awan negotiated with the protesters who demanded registration of an FIR against the attackers, compensation to the labourers and acceptance of their demands.

The traffic was restored after registration of an FIR against eight attackers and arrest of two of them, Azhar and Hafiz. Ms Alwani told this correspondent that the mill's owner and management had promised acceptance of the demands after negotiation with the workers.

PROTEST PLANNED: The district chapter of the People's Party Parliamentarians will launch a protest campaign after Muharram against the district police for registering false FIRs against the party activists and failing to apprehend those involved in the murder of a youth.